“We are rated 28 in the world. The United States, think of it, 28 in the world,” he said in a video he uploaded to Facebook earlier this year. “Third-world countries are ahead of us.”

Still, Schleicher explained that it’s not about the amount of money available for educational spending, but the types of resources the investment benefits.

“It’s a lot to do with how to invest those resources,” he said.” “Whenever these [poorer] countries have to make a choice between, you know, a better teacher and a smaller class, they invest in the capacity, they invest in teaching.”